What period in history fascinates you the most?

[CorneliaSt]

My degree was in history (special subject was the French Revolution) but it seems like a lifetime ago. I can barely remember any of it so it's my new year's resolution to start reading more and hauling the old knowledge out.

I'm as fascinated with WW2 as I ever was as a geeky child, but I also particularly enjoy Renaissance history and a good old king and queen story.

If you have any book recommendations that would be great.

USA from the late 19th to mid 20th century, from the big wave of immigration to the American Dream, civil rights etc.
If I could time travel, I'd want to go to a US college in the 50s, I think it would be fascinating (and probably horrifying in terms of lack of equal rights too!).

Mughal India

Oooh loads of different periods in history fascinate me! If I had to choose I'd probably say the 1920s and 1930s

The Russian Revolution, always found it fascinating and had sympathy for the workers and for the Romanov children, with Rasputin added into the mix for good measure !

18th century and Regency
WW2
60s and 70s ( remember the 70s, but the early part is hazy so I am fascinated with books ( and films) from this time.

The grimy underbelly of cities is more interesting to me as a subject to read about than the life of the gentry etc

The Vikings.

Any recommendations??

I love the Tudor period
Currently watching a prog about Mary, Queen of Scots.
Also WW1 and WW2, and the Georgian period. If only for the glorious architecture!

Have you read this:

www.whsmith.co.uk/products/georgiana-duchess-of-devonshire/amanda-foreman/paperback/9780006550167.html

Also on Amazon / Kindle of course.
Really interesting.

The Cold War and Tudors

My interest is largely in social and economic history. WW2 isn't a particular interest,but I would recommend Naomi Mitchison 's "Among You Taking Notes" , which is her wartime diary 1939-1945. I find personal memoirs and biographical writings are great for spurring me on to read sources and more serious works. I kept meaning to get to grips with USA late 18th/19th century history vis a vis Manifest Destiny, but only actually got round to it after reading "Pioneer Girl",the heavily annotated memoir by Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Great idea for a thread.

I have a degree in history; I specialized in Tudor-Stuart British history. That was many years ago, but the periods still fascinate me and I continue to read about them, especially the Restoration. Increasingly, I am much more interested in social, rather than political history, and have developed a passionate interest in what people wore, fueled by hours of YouTube videos.

I'm American and a Southerner and have a particular interest in the history of the American Civil Rights Movement. The recent death of civil rights icon John Lewis has prompted me to do quite a bit of reading about his early life and work.

Much to my own surprise, I really enjoy all historical dramas. I am sure it’s escapism due to a long period of enforced inactivity but still- enjoying them all. Unfortunately, my brain keeps reminding me of the lack of coffee/sugar/medicines during these times as well as the likelihood that life for women would either be drudgery or stifling boredom followed by terrifying and dangerous childbirth. Still love watching them though- warm and safe on the sofa with a cup of coffee in hand

The medieval period, plus 1920s - 1940s

Victorian

I read a really interesting book How to be a Victorian (details the everyday life of all Victorians it’s fascinating) so much of this time is still entrenched in our society and that of other countries

Russian history - Tsarist Russia up to Stalin. Fascinating.

The Cold War in Europe, post WW2 to a couple of years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall.

The Wars of the Roses, particularly interested in the life and reign of Richard III.
Social history from pretty much any period.

I mainly love medieval history, so Norman conquest through to Tudor, although I'm losing interest a bit past Henry 3. Then Regency.

For non fiction, I like any of Alison Weir's books, but I've got a shelf full of others as well. Eileen Power's book on Medieval People and Henrietta Leyser's on Medieval Women are particularly good. And I love The Greatest Knight by Thomas Asbridge, about William Marshall.

Fiction is all about a good story, I struggle enough to find a good story and good language to get very stressed about historical accuracy in fiction. But I love Georgette Heyer, and the Rockcliffe (?) novels and currently reading all the Bridgerton ones. Sharon Penman got me into medieval history in the first place, those are fun.

Ancient Egypt - I love reading anything about it

The seventeenth century, especially social history and folk belief. However, my undergrad dissertation was about trade in the Ottoman Empire, which is a lot more interesting than it sounds, and meant I could legitimately study pirates.

The rise and fall of the Austrian Empire.
How they basically blagged their way into becoming world leaders way beyond their means.

1500s. I think as we get a lot of exposure to it too. So long ago and so different yet so many similarities.

And anything really ancient I love.

The War of the Roses through to Tudors then to Elizabethan. Then a big jump to Victorian.

Also pre Revolution France.

So many.

Russia - from the Romanovs to fall of Soviet Union, but really my interest wanes a bit when Stalin dies. Orlando Figes, Simon Sebag Montefiore, Sheila Fitzpatrick and Anne Applebaum are all useful and not academic prices.

Interwar Britain, particularly interested in work around poverty, mental health and (female) criminality. There is a giant tome called ‘The Thirties’ author escapes me and another called ‘Narrating the 1930s’.

I’m interested thematically in insanity and Lisa Appanegesi, Mad Bad and Sad is great for this, plus the late great Roy Porter.

Modern Turkey. It’s tough to get good work that isn’t solely political history and so much is focussed on Ataturk but there have been 4 coups since the countries founding and its a multi ethnic large Black Sea country like Russia which opens it up for such wide scholarship but its slow trickling through with social and cultural history so I don’t have any clear recommendations here as I’m still searching.

I also like much older stuff, fascinated by the Mongols and tribes of Central Asia, Caucasus and Asia Minor.